Afferent neurourology and urologic pain syndromes: Current state of the art

摘要

'Afferent neurourology' refers to the field of study concerned with the processing of sensory information related to the genitourinary tract [1]. Abnormal processing of this sensory information results in distressing symptoms, such as pain or urinary urgency. These symptoms are clinically recognized as conditions such as interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (BPS), chronic prostatitis/ehronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS), overactive bladder, lower urinary tract symptoms, and chronic orchal-gia. Each of these is a syndrome (collection of symptoms) without objective markers, and it is common for individual patients to exhibit symptoms that meet criteria for more than one of these conditions. The articles in this edition of Current Opinion in Urology serve to highlight some recent developments that have occurred in the field of afferent neurourology.